Snow could hit by end of this week as forecasters warn of a -7C 'Arctic plunge' sweeping across the UK.
The Met Office has alerted the public to a Sudden Stratospheric Warming (SSW) event, which has the potential to cause extremely cold spells.
An SSW weather phenomenon caused the brutal Beast from the East in 2018, which saw much of Britain grind to a halt.
The most recent weather maps turn icy blue on Saturday and Sunday, which could cause many parts of the UK to shiver in temperatures as low as -3C in Scotland and -2 in northern England.
Freezing temperatures continue into Monday, with maps showing icy blue spreading further across the country, while ny Tuesday temperatures could plummet to as low as -7C in Scotland.
Similar temperatures are forecast across Wales by next Thursday,
High pressure has been dominating the UK in recent weeks and it is expected to head towards Iceland which could see the northerly winds pushing south across all parts of the country, said Met Office forecaster Alex Deakin.
“Moisture in air increasing chance of snow, jet stream could also increase wintry showers,” he continued. “Low pressure systems getting involved and they are more likely to inject perhaps a little bit of moisture which combined with the cold air could make things more interesting."
The colder air is expected to continue through next week and Mr Deakin said that most computer models are now showing this.
“Most recent runs, this is from the European model, only have one or two (outcomes) which push the milder air in by the time we get to the back end of next week, most of them are now keeping things pretty cold through next week,” he said.
“It is very likely to be cold, colder than it is now, when you’ve got that cold air in place and you’ve got other things coming together, the positions of those low pressures, that does increase the chance of some sleet and snow but the details or where and when we just don’t know at this stage.”
Meanwhile, for the end of this week there is unlikely to be much change in the weather.
Mr Deakin said: "It is going to be more of the same, we’ve seen quite a few showers around during Wednesday but they will be easing off and most places are looking pretty dry for the rest of this week.
"Often fairly cloudy and a chilly feel but of course the clouds make such a difference at this time of the year when we see the March sunshine it will feel pleasant enough but at night it will still be fairly frosty.”
UK 5 day weather forecast
Today:
A brighter day across the south with sunny spells developing. Some sunshine also likely across western Scotland with light winds. Elsewhere, rather cloudy with a few showers in the north and west. Temperatures near average.
Tonight:
Cloud becoming more extensive overnight, although clear spells are likely to persist across parts of western Scotland, western Wales and southwest England where a frost is possible.
Friday:
Largely dry but often rather cloudy. Best of the sunshine across central and western Scotland, as well as southeast England. Temperatures remaining around average.
Outlook for Saturday to Monday:
Often cloudy with a scattering of mainly light showers. Some breaks, mainly to the lee of high ground. Becoming colder from the northeast, with snow and hail showers by Monday.
